Rundas
by S. A. Morley
Summary: Rundas grew up on the planet Phrygis. There, he became attached to bounty hunting, and sets off on his first journey towards his future career; meeting some familiar faces. Prequel to Corruption.
1. Chapter 1: Prologue

**The small classroom was crowded with desks. These pieces of furniture were created entirely of ice. At each desk, there sat a Phrygisian child at the age of about fourteen. All of them resembled another in the same species, with the exception of different colored markings that covered their alien bodies. **

** The males (there were nine) were structured differently than the females. They had broad shoulders and chests, with strong arms and legs. Their long limbs ended in three claws, with their feet ending flat and elongated. When they grew to maturity, they sprouted short, tentacle like features below their chins. Only male Phrygisians had the ability to create and manipulate ice. The colors of their bodies were normally darker in hues.**

** The females (seven count in the classroom) were drastically different. They were smaller in stature than the males, who were a lot bigger and burlier. Their limbs were about the same, except for having one more finger than the men. The women had thin bodies that were not as tough and built as the men. They didn't have armored body parts, or were they heavy like the opposite gender. The women often had brightly colored bodies.**

** A few examples of some of the children there, are these:  Grorn. A young Phrygisian light green colored boy who had been awfully premature at birth, his body armor not fully developed, making it squishy and pale. He was exceedingly shy to anyone but his parents, Baydon and Sailuye. **

** Armant. A female youth of bright orange who favored learning over socialism. She was close friends with all of her literature, some she'd written, some she'd not. Armant's mother and father were very proud of her great knowledge.**

** Jaiduhs. An eccentric lad with deep brown marks and a quick mouth. He was always on the run, hardly ever stopping for anything but sleep. Jaiduhs usually skidded along anything on Phrygis he could touch, urging himself to go faster than what he normally could. The boy often embarrassed his parents with his wild activity.**

** But, this story is not about any of them. We are focusing on the most important Phrygisian that may have ever existed.**

** Rundas, was his name.**


	2. Chapter 2: The Hunting Game

I sat at my desk, completely and utterly bored. The only thing on my mind was after school, when I would be accompanying my father, Daygon, to the mines. Our instructor had a very monotone voice, which led to the several occasions of my fellow students falling asleep.

Our lesson today was on controlling our ice powers. This course was for the boys, so the girls chatted quietly to one another on the other side of the room.

I was positioned behind Laot, the class clown, who was making funny faces at himself in an ice mirror he forged crudely. I rolled my eyes. Why did he use his gift so foolishly?

"Silence Oline!" the teacher ordered suddenly, the pupils jumping. Ice on the edge of his long claw sharpened audibly at the girl that sat a few seats away.

Oline hung her head, her magenta body shining as I watched her. "I'm sorry, sir," she said quietly.

He "hmph'ed" and turned to our section. "Do you all understand?"

All the boys nodded, except for me. I wasn't noticed, for Laot's huge shoulders blocked me entirely from view.

"Yes, sir," they repeated out of habit. A Phrygisian always had to apologize or acknowledge something that was either bad or a question. I though, never followed that rule. I was too busy daydreaming about being a hunter.

"Good," the instructor cruelly smiled. "you are all free to go. Have a joyful rest of the day." He waved his hand in dismissal as we all got up from our desks, the boys sealing their supplies inside with their ice. The girls had little compartments in their desks that protected their belongings from thievery.

I dashed out of the building, breathing in the frost crisp air. It was cold, as usual on Phrygis. The sun was faintly shining gold in between the heavy blue clouds that covered the surface of our little moon. I could, however, see Bes III in the sky. A large, white dot with swirling black and gray.

"Hey, Rundas!" a voice called, rousing me from my thoughts.

I quickly turned, snow crunching beneath my feet. A few of my friends were beckoning to me, Hartch and Platto. "You up for a game?" they shouted.

I ran over. "Sure!"

Platto's maroon color really stood out amongst the bleach white snow. "You it?"

I smirked. "You know I am!"

Hartch's body was more sullen. His hue was midnight black. "All right! Now you have to catch us!"

I straightened my back. "Shouldn't be too hard. You two are the slowest Phrygisians I've ever seen."

Platto tilted his head to the side. "Oh really?" He manipulated red ice beneath his soles, taking off into the air. He was sluggish at first, but as his altitude increased, so did his speed.

"We'll make you eat those words, Rundas!" Hartch chanted as he too sped off on a black ice path, circling above me and high-fiving Platto as they passed each other.

I raised my hands, aiming at my targets. "The bounty hunter locks on..." I muttered to myself, making this little game seem all too real. "His prey unknowing and helpless..." My right hand was following Platto's body. I closed one of my eyes, focusing on shooting my friend down. "He shoots-" I fired a chunk of ice into the air, it sailing high and eventually smacking into my friend's chest. "And hits it!" I cried as Platto uttered a squeak of shock, spiraling down at high velocity. He landed in the snow with a poof and a thud. "You're out!" I shriek happily, drinking in my triumph.

I turned my attention to Hartch. He was better at evasion that Platto was, so I had to try a little bit harder this time.

I raised my hand again, it drifting around as the dark Phrygisian soared through the air. "You can't get me!" He shouted, hurling giant spears of charcoaled ice down at me.

I dove to the side as they sliced into the ground, burying myself in a snow hill. I created a small window that I could peer out of, seeing Hartch and firing as many ice balls as I could at him.

My friend easily dodged, mocking me with laughter and taunts. "That all you got, Rundas? C'mon! Humans can shoot better than you!"

I gasped, that was a major insult. On Phrygis, humans come here to mine the ice that we have. At first, our ancestors didn't want them here, so they fought. The invaders were terrible in combat, and mostly missed their shots; clearly undertrained. I never understood that, because we Phrygisians are very tall and big. Eventually, because of their dwindling numbers, they signed a peace treaty and never battled again. The ends of the deal were simple: The humans could mine the ice if they paid back the Phrygisians, and the Phrygisians would let them mine and not attack. I learned _that_ in a very boring history lesson.

I was furious. "_Aauugh_!" I screamed, blasting out of my miniature fort and into the air with my ice.

I sailed towards Hartch at insane speed. He hadn't noticed my approach till I was well within arms reach of him. He snapped his smokey head in my direction, his grey eyes widening. "Au-!" He only had time to utter half of an exclamation before I tackled him midair.

Hartch ended his black trail as we plummeted down, freezing air whooshing past us as we wrestled. My friend struggled to break free of my grasp, succeeding only a few times. In order to stop him from escaping, I froze my hands to his shoulders.

"You can't get away from me!" I jeered, smirking as we neared the ground. Hartch was beneath me, his expression a tad fearful. That was shocking, for he was never scared.

We made contact with the drift, a giant, mushroom cloud of snow exploding around us. Once it was cleared, Hartch was buried a foot deep, only his arms and partially his feet visible. I stood over him, laughing as he groaned. "I told you it would be easy!"

Platto huffed up to us, covered in snow with a large dent in his chest armor. "You're so unfair, Rundas." He sighed as Hartch slowly rose from his defeat, shaking his head and shivering.

"How are you so good?" The black Phrygisian asked.

"Natural talent boys. Natural talent." I grinned broadly.


	3. Chapter 3: The Ice Mines

Another voice calling to me. "Rundas!" It was my father.

I turned, as did my friends. "Hey, dad! Are we going?"

My father nodded, waving his arm. "Let's go! You wouldn't want to be late for your first day in the mines!"

I flipped around and waved Hartch and Platto goodbye, jogging up to Daygon. He was several heads taller than me, though we looked exactly alike.

Daygon's body color was light tealish, unusual for Phrygisian men. He had six short tentacles below his ovallish head, and two small, yellow dots for eyes. His neck armor was thick, as was his broad shoulder plating and chest, leg and foot coverings. My father stood bold, tall. I've always looked up to him. Being an only child, who else would be the perfect example of who I wanted to become when I grew up?  "Shall we go, son?" He asked in his deep, kind voice. I nodded excitedly. "Then let's go! Why are you dilly-dallying?" He placed his arm behind my back and guided me away from the school grounds.

"What are we going to do there?" I asked curiously when we were several miles away from the school.

"Well," Daygon said, sighing. His breath came out in a cloud because it was so cold. "we will be assisting the Galactic Federation platoon in breaking off and loading the ice masses safely. The mines are deep underground, so we must take extra precautions: There will be other Phrygisian adults there, all male, so there won't be any casualties if anything goes wrong." My dad nudged my shoulder pads. "Shouldn't be too hard for you, right? Aren't you the top fighter in your dueling class?"

I smiled and nodded, crunching through the snow alongside him. "Anything else?"

Daygon chuckled. "Maybe you'll be lucky enough to stand on their cargo ships. Those things are massive! I've had the privilege to enter one once..." He had a pondering look on his face, like he was recalling an old memory.

"Are they fascinating?" I was growing increasingly anxious.

"Very! But, there is a downside. They are always heated. In order to keep the ice from melting, they have to keep the containers they're stored in at sub zero temperatures. But everywhere else has to be warm enough to sustain human life." He explained. I pictured metal melting because of the warmth. Or maybe I was exaggerating it too much...

A large shadow stretched across the snow. I looked up, seeing a gigantic silver space craft, _Explorer_. Its sleek, aerodynamic body was shining brightly, even in the dimming glow. Days were short here on Phrygis. We had to make due with the four hours of daylight. A large doorway with a huge hatch lay open, hot air that blurred the landscape behind it rushing out. Phrygisians and small, heavily suited men trudged up and out of a hole in the ground. Only the natives of Phrygis were pushing giant carts filled to overflowing with ice shards and pillars. Some of them stretched several feet skyward. A few of the men observed, with large guns in their hands.

"Here we are, Rundas. The ice mines of our fair little planet," my father walked ahead of me as I gawked. "It's time we get down into the ground before night creeps in." I quickly followed him, fear building up inside me at being left alone.

Daygon led me down a metal ramp that was the path into the mines. I got several stares from the humans, but none from my fellow Phrygisian members. It wasn't dark down in the pit, as I thought it would be, for artificial lights (most likely provided by the humans) hung from the walls and illuminated the ice that hadn't yet been harvested.

Cold water gushed out of the walls from an unknown source during the day, and would freeze into icicle formations at night. That's what kept the mine richly supplied, and it was that reason kept bringing back the Galactic Federation.

My father stopped suddenly at a large area that's walls were covered in frozen crystals, where a human in a metal suit with a head plate that glowed red stood. The man also had another human beside him, his getup the same, despite him holding a gun. Daygon nodded down to the creatures that were as tall as I was. "Gentlemen,"

They turned their helmets up to him, acknowledging him with the same gesture. "Hello, there," the one without the weapon said, watching an indigo Phrygisian heave a cart past us in the tunnel. "Is there anything you need?"

"Yes. My son, Rundas," Dad put his hands on my shoulders. "Is one of the newest assistants in the mines. I just thought I would let you know Admiral Johnson." He spoke the human's title like it was something in another tongue, very unfamiliar.

_Johnson? _I thought, squinting at the Admiral's face. _What a strange name..._

The man chuckled, his voice sounding mechanical through his helmet. "Will he work? I mean, some of the adolescents you bring here are lazy and don't care about anything but themselves!" He spoke rudely. I didn't react on the outside, but inside I was shocked that he would say something like that in front of me.

"Of course Rundas will work. He's a very responsible young Phrygisian and is extremely talented with his ice powers. Right?" Father asked, looking down at me.

I nodded. "I'll do whatever you ask, Admiral," I said a little nervously, my voice cracking slightly on my last syllable. "_Johnson."_ I finished, sounding out the word slowly. It was hard to pronounce.

The Admiral's shoulders shook in laughter. "Well! Let's see what you can do, kid!" He pointed his armored finger to a large slab of shiny ice that had formed on the wall. "Why don't you move that and set it onto the mine cart?"

I turned to the ice and approached it, grabbing a few handholds with my three claws and attempting to pry it off the wall. I failed miserably. The thing stuck like I had never even made to move it.

I did it again, pulling and tugging till my arms ached. I backed away from it, embarrassment gnawing at my throat and my face growing hot.

The Admiral laughed again out of pure amusement. He walked over to me, patting my head harshly and saying, "Aww, that was cute. Maybe in a few years you could come back and _try_ to at least chip off a sliver," he strolled out of the tunnel, the soldier next to him hooting how weak the Phrygisian children were. Once they were through tittering, Admiral Johnson shouted, "All right, boys! Let's call it a day and pack up this puppy!" His voice became quieter as he left the mines.

I stood motionless, silent. I stared at the slab, my disappointment combining with the remorse and stupidity I felt. My dad's hand appeared on my shoulder. "You know, Rundas," he said softly and comforting-like. "Admiral Johnson _can_ be a bit of a brute, sometimes. He just didn't know how amazing you can be."

I didn't feel reassured. I turned away from him and walked shamefully up the hallway, only a few of the workers still coming up from the deep underground. None of them were humans.

"What's wrong?" One of them asked (he was deep purple), taking the time to step beside me. My father joined on my other side shortly after.

"The... Admiral, was cruel to Rundas..." Daygon explained, I hanging my head.

"Humans are ruthless and unkind. They are parasites that destroy planets, sucking the life out of them. Then they go mooch off someone else." The purple Phrygisian grumbled, a frown emerging on his face. "Maybe you'll do better tomorrow?"  I held my head up higher, walking out of the mines and into the extremely dark winter air. "I think I will," I watched the hatch of the ship close with a hiss.


	4. Chapter 4: Stowaway

It would be dangerous. I'd have to be quick, sly, and completely unnoticed. Did humans have sharp vision? Were they able to detect even the _slightest_ change? I'd need to do my best in order remain secret.

All I had to do was sneak on the Explorer without any interference, and then, once the ship was well in orbit, I would demand to see Admiral Johnson. If he complied, -which he _should_- then I would show him what I could do, and redeem my embarrassing act yesterday. Perfect.

My father hadn't taken me to the mines today, and left me at my dwelling with my mother, Breena. When I woke that morning, Daygon had long since left, about an hour before, she had told me.

After eating First Meal, I snuck out of the house while Breena's back was turned. Then, I'd used my ice to glide high over the snow, making sure nobody would follow me.

The blue sky was strangely cloudless today, the sunshine blinding. It's beams illuminated the snow brightly, the glare from the banks making it hard for me to see. I put a hand up to cover the ground, easing up the gleam slightly, and soared for a few miles before I saw the toy-like Explorer far below. I descended, landing next to it and hiding from view of the troops. I peeked at the miners.

The shuttle's crew seemed distraught, today. The Phrygisian workers were observing the empty carts and hauling in the full ones. Admiral Johnson was on his tip toes screaming up at Daygon, who looked down at the small man. I listened.

"How could this happen?! I thought you said that the mines were limitless!!"

My father shook his head. "I thought so, too. Maybe this cavern has depleted its water supply. After all, we've used it for many a century, Admiral." he sounded like he wanted to calm the human down, but failed miserably.

"You lied to us, that's what you did!! You lied so that we would leave your pathetic moon alone!! I was right about you Phrygisians. You only care for yourselves and your precious planet!!" the Admiral was fuming.

"I can assure you, Johnson, none of this was planned!" Daygon raised his voice slightly till it was a bit more stern. He used that tone with me when I was in trouble. "Even if we _tried_ to get rid of the humans, we would have broken the treaty we made before!"

"Screw your stupid treaty!!" the soldiers around him cocked their guns at my father, and he went rigid. The Phrygisians around him halting as well. The Admiral stabbed a finger towards Daygon's face, not noticing. "If I don't get what I came for, I'll lose my job!! You better find me another cave by tomorrow or I'll blow this piece of ____ up!!"

I didn't recognize the word he used for Phrygis, but I don't want to repeat it. The Admiral sunk down to the snow, calling to his brigade that they were leaving early.

My heart raced. This was my one and only chance. While everybody was distracted, I dashed around the mouth of the Explorer and climbed the heavy metal ramp towards the cargo dock. I ran as silently as I could towards an overflowing cart of ice and crouched next to it, controlling my fast breathing and shaking limbs. Chill air hovered around me from the ice.

The Galactic Federation troops marched in as well, but didn't see me, and closed the giant hatch with a sharp hiss. I watched my father be surrounded by concerned Phrygisians, all of whom were muttering questions if he was okay or not. The door sealed tight, locking me inside.

The dock was cleared of humans, and the lights inside were snapped off. I jumped at the sudden darkness, hearing something screech behind me. I felt around, realizing a thick cover of some sort had been lowered over the mine cart, keeping the cold from escaping. I looked around blindly, hearing a male voice say from afar, "Let's turn the AC up. I'm freezing!"

The Explorer lurched below me, and I heard heavy booms of engines roaring to life. The ship was leaving the planet Phrygis at rapid pace, ascending bumpily. I couldn't see my home world disappear below, for there were no windows in the cargo dock. I sighed.

Something groaned mechanically, and I snapped my head in the general direction. From the high left, dry, hot air was being pumped into the room. It felt strange on me, little prickles zipping up and down my body as the heat increased. The vent blew it out unceasingly.

Pretty soon I was sweating, and growing very uncomfortable. Gasping for breath, my throat dry, I lied down on the metal ground, coughing raggedly a few times. The heat that swept me was unbearable, I could hardly think straight. I moaned almost inaudibly. Maybe this _wasn't_ such a good idea.

After an hour of going into bodily shock, I eventually passed out.


	5. Chapter 5: Saved

"He's waking up! Quick! Get some water!" a voice ordered, which was followed by an agreement and some footsteps trailing away.

"We shouldn't have taken him from the cargo dock... The Admiral's gonna kill us..." another voice mumbled melancholically.

"He was dying! Phrygisians can't take in too much warmth. Heat stroke, Violet! _Extreme_ heat stroke. That's what he was going through. So now, we're helping him." the first voice responded to the sadistic tone.

The other person sighed. "Whatever you say, Clark."

I opened my eyes to find I was laying down on my back, staring up at a hard ceiling. The lights were turned down low, so I didn't have to blink against them. Several monitors and many cords were here and there, all connecting to me somehow. The room was empty except for me.

I snapped my head down, seeing that my entire body was covered in wires and tubes. The tubes were half inside me, pumping in something bright blue and cold. I realized in horror that I was strapped onto a hospital bed like an experiment.

I tried to break free, fear clawing at me rapidly. "W-what is this?" I shifted around under the restraints, grunting as I felt something sharp move unpleasantly in my leg.

A door opened, a human man walking into the room. He wore a black uniform with the Galactic Federation symbol stitched on his shoulder. His hair was blond, and he had dull green eyes. The man approached the bed I was lying on, fumbling with some medical instruments on a cart that sat nearby. "Hello, Phrygisian. It's good to see you're awake, finally. I was beginning to think we' d lost you."

I swallowed. "How so?" my voice was a tad shaky.

"You were unconscious for about two days. If Violet and I hadn't of found you, the Admiral would have had you murdered." he gave me a smile, which wasn't intended for joyful purposes. "How lucky you are."

I started to sweat again. "Where am I, human? I've never seen this place before."

He removed a bottle filled with something thick and blue. Phrygisian blood was that same color. I shivered. "You're on the Galactic Federation Starship Omni. We're a hospital ship, taking care of troops who were injured and can't go back into the field till they're better."

"Why are you healing me, though?" another human man came in through another door, pushing a stand that carried a huge jug of water.

The man holding the blood stopped and sighed. "Because I care about people."

"But I'm no-"

"It doesn't matter if you're human or not, Phrygisian. All life matters to me, including alien life." he looked at me, "I hope you understand that."

I nodded slowly. "Yes, I do."

He smiled again. This time it was happy. "Good, are you thirsty?"

"Yes, very." I resigned my confusion and tried sitting up, but was held back by the straps on the bed. "Uh..."

"Oh! Here, let me undo these for you." he leaned over and undid the restraints and buckles, letting me loose. I was still, though, hooked up to canisters that were pumping the cold stuff into me. "How does that feel?"

I sighed and moved my joints around, most of them popping loudly. It felt good. "Much better, sir...?"

"Sergeant Clark," the man told me his name. "May I ask who you are, Phrygisian?"

"I'm Rundas." I told him who I was, and gratefully accepted a glass of water that he handed me, downing it in seconds. "Could I have more?" I held the cup forward.

Clark made a surprised face. "Okay, Rundas." he took the glass from me and refilled it, giving it back. I drank a little more slowly this time, actually tasting the water. It had a metallic twinge to it, but was cold and refreshing. I sighed again with contentment.

"Now that you're awake, would you like a tour of Omni?" Clark asked, raising an eyebrow.

I nodded. "Let's go."

"Violet! Come here!" Clark called, a human woman stepping into the room. She had long, black hair and electric blue eyes. Her skin was fairly pale, and she wore heavy dark makeup over her eyelids. On her curvy, skinny body was a gray jumpsuit. Her hips swayed when she walked.

"You got it to talk?" she asked, and I recognized the depressing tone in her voice. "I thought all savage aliens spoke in their own language, not english." Violet studied me with her shocking eyes, her full, black tinted lips curving into a scrutinizing frown. I stared at her, thinking that she resembled underground worms that inhabited Phrygis. They had bad attitudes and were often dark in color.

"Phrygisians speak english because we learned it from the first humans who visited our moon." I said, recalling the mind-numbing history lessons back on my home planet taught by my monotone teacher. "It was passed from generation to generation and we eventually lost our own tongue."

Violet folded her thin arms. "Well, aren't you a smart one? Could you tell me why you boarded Explorer in the first place? I'd love to know."

Clark looked at me, quickly changing the subject. "The reason I called you here, Violet, was so you would kindly help us guide Rundas around Omni. That is, if you're not too busy."

She frowned again. "Sure I've got time. Loads of it." Violet approached and unhooked a few of the tanks from me, yanking out the cords from my body. I winced as they wiggled out of me like snakes. She dropped them on the floor, the parts that were inside me slick with blue. "Well, come on, _Rundas_. (I'm surprised you have a name) We should begin the tour."

Clark gave me his hand, which I took and used to get off the bed. I almost fell over from weak legs, but was able to catch myself. I had to keep the canister of liquid nitrogen I was connected to next to me, rolling it along on its wheels. I followed Violet out the door with Clark right next to me.

The hall we emerged out of was narrow, but wide enough for me to fit in. I listened to Violet explain things as we walked around Omni. "This is a hallway, very good for transportation," her voice dripped with boredom and sarcasm. "out there is the Galactic Federation fleet, which is at standby for anything to happen.... ....The doors you see on either side of you are filled with wounded soldiers, all being gradually healed so they may return to duty someday.... ....Beyond this passage is the kitchen, where all the computers and cooks make the food we eat.... ....That is where we keep the logs of all bounty hunters, Space Pirates, Metroids, Chozo, and many other aliens that crawl around space.... ....This is the containment room, home to all the psychos and nutjobs we come across...." she continued on for an hour as we walked around behind her, viewing the vessel Omni from the inside.

After the tour, we arrived back where we started. I wanted to fall asleep, for all of that had mysteriously tired me out. Clark noticed, opening the door for me an letting me walk inside.

The room was cleared of all the wires that were there previously, and it was stark clean. I sighed, feeling cold again, which was pleasant and comforting. I went over to the bed and laid down, sitting the liquid nitrogen canister next to the bed.

"You going to sleep?" Clark asked, and I nodded lazily. He went over to the light switch, flicking them downward. "Goodnight, Rundas." he said softly.

I didn't respond, falling asleep almost instantly.


End file.
